"My mother was 99 years, 11 months and 14 days old when she died, and she didn't have a gray hair on her head," declared Curtis Rambo, Deming Civil War veteran, who celebrated his 91st birthday Monday.

But Curtis Rambo has snow-white hair and a drooping mustache. The old-timer, dressed neatly in a blue shirt, black vest and trousers, sat in an easy rocker as he talked. His clear blue eyes demanded attention, and respect.

Born in Ohio, he came in 1909 to live on a farm near Hondale, until Tom Baker became sheriff of Luna county and persuaded him to move to Deming, where he served as a deputy sheriff for four years until his health broke. "They hauled me home," Mr. Rambo explained.

When asked if he smoked or chewed, he pulled a very small piece of "Day's Work" tobacco out of his pocket and replied, "I take a big chew, like that!"

After Morgan's raid into Pennsylvania, Curtis Rambo joined the Federal Army on August 18, 1863, for 100 days. Because he was too young to enlist, not quite 16, his age was put down as 18. On May 1, 1884, he received an honorable discharge. The once-white document today has a light yellow tinge, but it is still in the possession of Curtis Rambo.

Farming is what he likes best. "I'd rather farm than anything else, because after you buy your coffee, sugar and salt, you can raise the balance of your food," he said.

For 69 years Curtis Rambo has been a Mason. He has been married twice, has seven children, ten grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. He explains, "I guess I'm a good man and the Lord just preserved me for a long time."

Eleven reltives helped him celebrate his birthday Monday, at a dinner.